


Drifting

by noellehenry



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Bookshop Owner Louis Tomlinson, Canal Boats, Enemies to Lovers, Friendship, Grand Union Canal, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Loneliness, M/M, Misunderstandings, Music Festival, Narrowboat, Recordshop owner Harry Styles, Teasing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-10
Updated: 2019-03-24
Packaged: 2019-11-15 01:00:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 18,665
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18063551
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/noellehenry/pseuds/noellehenry
Summary: Canal Boat AUHarry becomes the owner of a shabby narrowboat, quite unexpectedly. He decides to keep it and make his longtime dream come true; he’ll start his own business, afloat.He embarks on a new adventure in a small village along the Grand Union Canal with his boat ‘Gay Tunes’ where his neighbours are the musician on the 'Black Velvet’, a fitness centre owner on the 'Slow’ and an extremely annoying bookshop owner on the 'Floating Pages’; seriously, what is Louis Tomlinson’s problem?!





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I've always been fascinated by narrowboats (canal boats) and much to my disappointment I haven't found any Larry story set on a canal boat yet, so I decided to write one myself.
> 
> I hope you enjoy the fic as much as I enjoyed writing it.
> 
> A big thank you to [Sam](https://britpickerhl.tumblr.com) for picking out spelling and grammar mistakes :-) 
> 
> Title from Enya's song on the album Amarentine.
> 
> I've made a rebloggable tumblr post for the fic, if you like the story and want to help me promote the story... it's [here](https://noellehenryfics.tumblr.com/post/183359694641/drifting-by-noellehenry-rating-teen-and-up)

 

 

Harry looks a little confused at the letter in his inbox. He’s either still high from last night’s weed smoking, in that case … strong stuff or… he’s done something very stupid last night while being high. Deep in his heart he hopes it’s the first option and there’s only one person he can ask, one person who had been present with him in the room last night, enjoying their shared smoke.

‘Nick? Did I do something out of the ordinary last night while we were smoking?’ He yells at his friend Nick Grimshaw who is standing in the kitchen of his tiny flat in Northern London. Harry has a temporary roof over his head at Nick’s place, because he’s still looking for a new flat to move into after his former rented flat had been sold by the owner. He hears Nick bursting out in laughter.

‘Depends on what you call out of the ordinary, I suppose?’ Nick, dressed in black skinnies and a grey jumper, walks into the small living room, holding two cups of coffee. He places one on the table in front of his friend, who sits, still dressed in a T-shirt and purple pyjama bottoms, and stares dumbfoundedly at the screen of his laptop. ‘You were your usual giggly self when smoking. You did, however, bid on some boat on ebay. Why?’

Harry rubs his hands over his face and shakes his head firmly. Nick eyes him with amusement while he leans his back against the kitchen counter.

‘My bid was accepted.’ Harry groans. Nick spits out his coffee and once more bursts out in laughter. He wipes the tears from his eyes. Harry looks up at him and pouts.

‘What kind of boat have you bought?’ Nick asks once he’s calmed down a bit, but is still grinning. ‘Cruise ship? Sail boat? Row boat?’

‘A narrow boat.’ Harry replies, pulling a sour face.

Nick plops down on a chair, unable to contain another fit of laughter. ‘Oh my God, Harry. This is hilarious!’ he laughs.

‘Yeah, very.’ Harry sighs deeply. He so regrets his befuddled action of the previous night.

‘It’s… old.’ Nick tries to keep a serious face. His hands are tucked away in the pockets of his jacket, a red scarf is wrapped tightly around his neck as they stare awkwardly at the dilapidated boat in front of them. They’re at the Rowland’s wharf where Harry’s latest purchase, Eliza, is bobbing up and down in the water looking pitiful.

‘You can say it; it’s dodgy, it’s hideous.’ Harry translates Nicks remark. Nick covers his nose and mouth to refrain from giggling. Ever since Harry has become the not-so-proud owner of an ancient canal boat, Nick has been laughing so often at Harry’s unwanted buy, it’s becoming quite annoying. Unfortunately, Harry’s bid on the narrow boat was legally binding and there was no way he could get out of his purchase; which made Harry swear to never smoke weed again. His brain under the influence of cannabis is an unreliable adviser

The Eliza looks like it might sink any time now; the paint covering the cabin is peeling off, revealing rust underneath, two windows are cracked, cobwebs are covering the others, still intact windows.The entire boat looks like a wreck.

‘I wonder if it’s safe to enter. I’d like to see the cabin on the inside.’ Harry wonders out loud as he’s jumping from one foot on the other in an attempt to keep them warm. His hands are covered in gloves and he’s wearing a beanie on his head.

‘I’d bring a lifejacket, if I were you.’ Nick comments prickly.

‘Hello there!’ A man walks up to them, he’s wearing a thick jumper, stained jeans and sturdy boots. ‘My name is Mitch. I heard you’re here to see your boat.’ Mitch holds out his hand for Harry and Nick to shake.

‘His boat. ‘ Nick emphasizes, pointing at Harry. ‘I’m just here for moral support.’ Harry glares at his friend. As if! He’s only here to gloat at Harry and his bad bargain.

‘I know she looks a bit rough, but underneath that shoddy appearance, she’s as solid as the day she was made.’ Mitch promises. Harry can’t help but raise an eyebrow in disbelief. ‘Honestly! The previous owner spent his last years in an OAP home and stored the boat here. I made sure, the frame and engine are still in tip top shape. You just need to paint her over and clean the inside and she’ll be as good as new.’

‘Oh! Can I go on it, like… now?’ Harry asks Mitch, suddenly feeling a little more reassured,

‘Follow me.’ Mitch steps on the boat. ‘I brought the keys. Let’s have a look inside.’ Harry follows Mitch, carefully stepping on the slightly bobbing boat. The front deck is average, like most of the other narrow boats on the wharf. Most of them are there for restoration and painting. Mitch stamps on the deck, demonstrating the solidity of the boat. ‘Let’s have a look inside.’ He opens the door with his key and steps inside, Harry follows, looking over his shoulder.

‘Aren’t you coming?’ He asks Nick, but Nick shakes his head.

‘No way! You go ahead, it’s yours after all. I’ll watch how you sink and call the emergency services.’ He promises with a smug grin on his face.

Harry sticks out his tongue; honestly, Nick is so annoying sometimes. Harry ducks his head as he steps through the door. He has no idea what to expect on the inside, except for cobwebs, a lot of dust and probably, rackety furniture. He is surprised to see how spacious the interior of the boat is.There are shelves lining the walls, covered in a thick layer of dust.

‘The Eliza used to be a floating thrift shop, before the old man retired.’

‘Really? Wow!’ Harry is surprised. He didn’t know the ship had been in business.

‘It should be in the contract; there’s a rover licence coming with the boat.’ Mitch explains. Harry blushes a little, he did not quite read the sales contract thoroughly, still thinking he could get rid of the boat before actually buying it; of course, he was wrong. ‘Do you have plans for a business?’

‘Uhm… no. To be honest, I didn’t even plan on buying a boat; it was a… mistake.’ Harry confesses embarrassedly. Mitch grins.

‘A drunken mistake?’

‘High.’ Harry sighs. Mitch chuckles, but doesn’t comment. Instead he opens another door that leads to, what must have been a living area. Again, it’s much larger than expected. There’s a berth at the far end, a living room, a small galley on the right, and a tiny bathroom on the left. ‘How about this? Do you like it?’

‘I’m amazed to be honest, there’s so much room, one could easily live in it.’ Harry is pleasantly impressed by the interior of the living space.

‘There is a residential mooring at Little Beck behind the pub and the bakery, which is still available for her, if you want, but… knowing now how you acquired her, I suppose you want to sell her as soon as possible, right?’ Mitch leans against the doorpost, his arms crossed. Harry walks into the space and touches the sides, inspects the berth, walks into the galley, opens the cabinets and smiles.

‘Actually… I think I’m going to keep her.’ He smiles widely at Mitch. ‘I can see myself living here and I do have an idea for a business, a dream I thought would always be … that, a dream, but I see so much potential, I want to give it a go. Nick, however, is going to kill me, if I tell him.’ They glance through the dirty window to see Nick pacing up and down, trying to keep warm. Even though it is early spring, the temperatures are still very much at winter levels.

‘I’m going to keep her!’ Harry smiles happily at Nick, who is staring back at him, convinced that Harry’s lost his mind. ‘It has so much space! You should see her from inside, Nick. There’s a kitchen, bathroom, living room and bedroom… sort of. And… I could open up my own record shop, like I’ve always wanted. Mitch tells me there’s a rovers licence coming with the boat. Isn’t that great?’ Harry rambles at Nick with great enthusiasm. Nick touches Harry’s forehead.

‘Are you having a sudden fever? Or have you finally lost your mind?’ He wants to know, Harry pushes Nick’s hand from his forehead.

‘There’s nothing wrong with me, I’m just… taking a new direction, besides, I can leave your couch and move into my own place, apparently there’s a residential mooring available not far away. Isn’t it exciting?’ Harry claps his hands, now that he’s warmed up to the idea of owning a narrow boat, he can see the potential of ‘his lady’. Apparently the boat is a she.

  


The following weekend Harry is driving to Rowland’s Wharf on his own.Nick had other things, important things, to do, but generously lent Harry his blue Mini Cooper for the day. He stretches his legs when he climbs out of the car; even though he is smaller than Nick is, even Harry has trouble fitting himself in the Mini Cooper.

Nick is still the only person who knows about Harry’s rash purchase. Harry still hasn’t told his mum nor his sister about his future home yet; it’s best to stall that moment for a bit, until his boat is a bit more presentable. He is sure his sister Gemma is going to inquire after his sanity too, just like Nick did. His mum is hopefully going to show some support, perhaps will even encourage him in his new adventure.

Armed with a bucket, sponge, cloth, broom and dustpan Harry walks towards his boat. Mitch is already there, waiting for him. In the past week Mitch has replaced the two broken windows and has done a thorough check up on the boat, looking for cracks, holes and other deficiencies that might withhold the boat from sailing safely.

‘Good morning Harry! I see you’re going to do some spring cleaning.’ Mitch teases as he sees Harry walking towards him, armed with his cleaning items. Today Harry’s wearing bright yellow wellies, a warm brown jacket, old black skinnies and a grey thick knitted jumper, instead of his usual bold coloured outfits. Winter has no intention yet to be pushed aside by spring; it’s still ice cold outside.

‘Hi Mitch. Tell me, what’s the damage.’ Harry greets him back. They watch the boat together. Harry has done some research online about narrow boats and has come across the possibility of replacing the diesel engine with an electric equivalent.

‘Just the two windows, I’ve been looking into your request about replacing the engine. There are licensing concessions available if you were to choose a new electric propulsion narrow boat, but in reality the battery bank required for power still needs to be recharged. There is not the infrastructure on the main waterways in place yet to provide regular and cost effective recharging points. And in your case, you would need to do a lot of reconstructure in the engine room to accommodate an electric engine, which will cost you quite a bit. So, I’m afraid your best option is to keep the trusty diesel. They’re simple, easy to maintain and safe.’

‘Then diesel it is.’ Harry concedes. Although he makes it a point to be environmentally conscious, he just doesn’t have the ££ to pay for such drastic measures. Mitch shows him around one more time, then hands him the keys and tells Harry if he is in need of coffee, he can get some at the wharfs canteen.

Harry starts his fit of cleaning on the interior humming to the songs on the playlist with upbeat songs on his mobile with his earphones in, entertaining himself while he’s sweeping and cleaning.

By the end of the day, the boat is clean on the inside ánd on the outside and Harry feels he has accomplished a lot today, he’s proud of himself. His boat still isn’t a beauty, but she is clean. Mitch and his employees will lift the boat from the water and place it on the wharf in the next week, to check the uxter plate and the bottom of the boat. After which, Harry can start painting the boat. Mitch advises him to keep the bottom black, just like it is now and to just add a new coat of black paint. The rest is up to him; Mitch has offered him a booklet with paint colour schemes going from traditional colours to more modern style colours. He also needs to think of an appropriate name for her, unless he wants to keep the old name ‘Eliza’ which had been the name of the previous owner’s wife.

  
‘Holy shit!’ Nick gasps a few weeks later when he sees Harry’s boat on the wharf. “That is … BRIGHT!’

Harry beams. He’d been contemplating painting his girl in traditional colours, but he couldn’t find the colours that really spoke to him, after which Mitch advised him to go with his guts, choose colours that made him feel good, colours that spoke ‘Harry Styles’. So Harry did just that, he went with his guts and now the boat screamed ‘Harry Styles’; the once dark green painted boat was now covered in layers of cream, purple and pink with huge rainbows painted on both starboard and port side of the boat and a sign underneath revealing the boat’s name. Until today Harry has been very secretive about the name.

‘Gay Tunes?! Honestly?’ Nick raises an eyebrow at Harry, who is still beaming proudly. He loves the appearance of the boat; it is totally him.

‘I think the name goes well with the business I’m going to set up and it is me… I’m gay, I like pink and purple and I like to sing. In addition, ‘gay’ also refers to happy songs.’ Harry explains his choice of naming his boat extensively to his friend.

‘True, it does scream Harry Styles to me.’ Nick admits, still giggling. ‘What’s the interior like?’

‘Quite boring, compared to the exterior.’ Harry replies as he goes up the ladder to open the door, then steps down and lets Nick have a look. The interior is a little less bright with pale wooden shelves and counter and black floorboards. Harry found an old cash-register at an antique shop that audibly ‘rings up’ his customers and a matching vintage doorbell to signal customers coming in if he’s in his private quarters or in the tiny stockroom. The walls are painted a soft cream. The wall behind the counter displays another rainbow and ‘Gay Tunes’ sign painted on.

‘Impressive, Styles.’ Nick compliments him when he steps down. ‘You really pulled it off. When are you going to move in?’

‘I’m thinking next weekend. Mitch is going to accompany me next Saturday to a visitor mooring nearby where I can load my stuff and collect the first stock of records and then I’ll be sailing to Little Beck, to the residential mooring that I secured last week. It’s behind a pub and a bakery, apparently there’s another floating business residing there as well, a bookshop, which could be good for my business too.”

‘Where’s Little Beck??’ Nick asks.

‘A bit further to the north, a village along the Grand Union Canal.’ Harry replies as if he’s known the village his entire life, while in truth he’s never been there, nor did he hear of the place before Mitch mentioned it. As of next week it’s going to be his hometown. He is excitedly looking forward to his new life.

‘Okay, so far so good.’ Harry breathes nervously as he steers away from the wharf’s waterfront into the middle of the canal. He had trouble starting the engine which was mainly due to his nervousness and lack of knowledge. Even though he’d been reading up on how to navigate a boat, it was another story to actually do it. Mitch encourages him to speed up a little as they’re now going at a snail’s pace.

‘We need to be at Bridgewater Willows before dark, Harry! Speed her up a little.’ Mitch encourages him. Once they’re sailing for a while, Harry relaxes somewhat, he’s even enjoying himself. It’s so peaceful on the water; he takes in the scenery on both sides of the canal, green pastures and fields, cows grazing the grass. The weather has changed drastically in a few weeks time. It’s pleasantly warm, the sun is shining and the smell of spring blossoms fill his nose. The white and pink colours of blossoms against a canvas of fresh green grass and bright blue sky is quite stunning.There is something exquisitely lovely about floating through a canal lined with fruit trees in full bloom.

‘You like it, don’t you.’ Mitch observes him.

‘I do. I never thought I was going to enjoy this, but I do.’ Harry sighs contentedly.

‘Let’s try to turn.’ Mitch smirks. Harry looks at him in shock.

‘What do you mean, turn. Like turn the boat?’

‘Yes, you need to learn how to turn your boat without bumping into waterfronts, animals or other boats.’ Mitch tells him.

‘Oh rats!’ Harry mutters. He should have known this wasn’t just going to be smooth sailing today. Mitch was going to teach him a few necessary skills for sailing the ‘Gay Tunes’ safely down the canal.

‘You see that winding hole over there?’ Mitch points in the distant. Harry sees it and nods. ‘Can you tell from which side the wind is coming from?’ He waits for Harry to reply,

‘The left… port side.’

‘Remember, you need to do this slowly. You don’t want to be blown sideways. Because the engine is at the back of the boat, she will want to turn faster at the rear; it’s like a pendulum. You can use this to your advantage. You also need to try using the rudder and blow system, like I showed you when were reversing to leave the wharf.’

‘Oh God, I’m sure we’re going to turn over.’ Harry’s hands are sweating instantly while holding the steering wheel firmly.

‘Don’t be nervous, I’ll help you. Now, when we approach the winding hole, you put your nose over into the V of the hole.’

Confusedly Harry touches his own nose. Mitch shakes his head with a smile.

‘No, silly. The nose of the boat.’

Harry blushes, of course, he knew that, he just wasn’t thinking.

‘You need to maintain a short distance from the bank and allow the stern of the boat to move across with the tiller. You may have to engage reverse and forward several times to get round. Just take your time. Remember, this is very important, always take your time. I will assist you.’

Harry’s eyes are focussed on the quickly approaching winding hole and when Mitch tells him.  
‘Now!’ he tries to remember all the info he’s just been given, but most importantly he remembers to remain calm and take his time. The ‘Gay Tunes’ nose slowly dips into the V of the hole, Harry prays silently she doesn’t turnover; he finds it a rather scary experience. The canal is fairly wide at that point, so keeping away from the bank is not that hard. It’s turning the boat, that is the hardest. He needs to reverse and forward many times before he’s finally turned the boat in the direction of the wharf.

‘Keep going, you’re doing fine.’

Harry takes a deep breath and steers his boat back into the middle of the canal; he’s done it! They sail for a while when Mitch suddenly says very casually.

‘Don’t you think we should turn?’

‘WHAT?’ Harry exclaims looking at Mitch in shock.

‘You want to go to Bridgewater Willows, don’t you?’ Amusement is sounding through Mitch’s voice.

‘Oh fuck! I need to turn her again, don’t I?’ Harry asks a little distressed.

‘Yup.’

‘I have to look for the nearest winding hole, right?’

‘Very good, Harry. Let’s see how you’re doing without my help, okay?’

‘Okay…’ Not really okay, but Harry knows he needs to learn to do these things on his own. He can’t very well ask Mitch to come along every time he needs to go somewhere.

With his tongue sticking out, he’s repeating the actions in his head when he’s at the next winding hole. This time, he feels a little more confident and he turns ‘Gay Tunes’ perfectly around. He earns a clap on his shoulder from Mitch.

‘Well done!’

Harry grins from ear to ear, he’s proud of himself. Still he wonders, why people don’t need a license to steer a narrow boat, it’s not that easy!

He sails the boat without any trouble to Bridgewater Willows, passing fields entirely filled with cheery yellow dandelions, watching galloping horses and riders on the towpath passing them, greeting Harry and Mitch with a smile. Although he’s been living in London for the past few years, he’s enjoying the much slower pace of life of the countryside already. There’s something peaceful about floating through the canals surrounded by blooming trees and fields, listening to birds tweeting in the air above them, quacking duck families swimming next to the boat and sheep and cows grazing lazily in pastures along the canal.

Bridgewater Willows is a small village with only visitor moorings. With Mitch’s help Harry steers his boat safely to the bank, where Mitch jumps off and secures the rope on a bollard. A little disappointed Harry asks.

‘Am I the only one at the mooring today?’

‘There will probably be a few more tonight, just to stay overnight, like you do too.’ Mitch says as they drink freshly made coffee by Harry on deck, enjoying the sunshine. Nick will drive to Bridgewater Willows later in the afternoon with Harry’s belongings. The collection of records he ordered, will be delivered in an hour.

When Mitch’s colleague arrives to pick him up, Harry has trouble saying goodbye. In the short time he has known Mitch, he‘s become a good friend. Harry thanks him again for all his help and has Mitch promising he’ll come to the ‘grand opening’ of Harry’s record shop.

‘Just let me know when and I’ll be there. Also, if there’s anything you need to know or not sure about regarding the boat, just call or text, okay?’

Harry promises he will, he’s sure Mitch will soon regret his offer, because Harry still has a lot to learn about his boat.

Once alone, he feels a bit unsure of what to do, so he goes inside to make space for the boxes of records that soon will arrive and for his personal stuff that Nick will bring by.

He hears a horn blaring, he glances through the window and smiles; the delivery van.

‘Amazing! You’re starting a business on the boat?’ The older man nods his approval when they shake hands. Harry tells him about his plan. When they’ve lifted the last box onto the boat, the man promises to spread the word about ‘Gay Tunes’.

The boxes take up quite some space and Harry dreads Nick’s arrival, he might have to take back some of Harry’s personal belongings or… he might have to store some at his mum’s. Which means, he’s going to have to tell her about his new living arrangements. He feels a bit nervous about telling her, maybe he should have done it a little sooner before he moved out of Nick’s place. He makes a note to call her once he’s arrived safely in Little Beck.

By 5 pm Nick arrives in his Mini Cooper, Harry watches him as Nick unfolds himself from his car. He can’t help but giggle. Why Nick has chosen a mini-cooper is beyond him, he’s too tall to fit properly in the driver’s seat, but Nick claims he loves the car and who is Harry to argue with him about his choice of car. There are boxes everywhere in the car, in the small boot, the backseat and passenger’s seat, piled up where possible.

‘You have too much stuff, Styles.’ Nick pants when they bring in the last two boxes.

‘I know, I’m not even sure I can fit all this on the boat.’ Harry admits, biting his lip.

‘We’ll make it fit, I’m not taking it back.’ Nick pointedly says. Harry holds up his hands in defense.

‘Alright, just saying…’

They pick up Indian take away from the nearby Indian restaurant and buy a bottle of wine from the local Spar.

‘Actually, this is not bad. It feels a bit like being on holiday.’ Nick says as they finish their dinner.

‘I just wonder if there are going to be more boats tonight, it feels a bit … empty.’ Harry looks outside. It’s getting dark and still no sign of other boats.

‘Harry, are you scared?’ Nick asks softly. Harry sighs, he doesn’t want to admit it, but it’s true, he feels a little uncomfortable being the only one at the mooring.

‘Yeah.’ He confesses with a blush.

‘Do you want me to stay over?’ Nick offers sincerely.

‘Would you mind terribly? I mean, I know you think I’m being silly living on a boat on my own, but I really want to make this work. It’s just… it’s awfully quiet here.’ He hangs his head, feeling a little ashamed.

Nick throws an arm around his shoulders.

‘Of course I’ll stay tonight, you fool. I even take the couch.’

‘Thanks Nick.’

They finish the bottle of wine and chat until midnight. Harry opens the cabinet next to the berth and throws Nick a spare pillow and blanket and makes sure his friend is comfortable for his unexpected sleepover.

‘Go to bed, Harry. I’m fine on the couch. Sleep well.’ Nick rolls his eyes at Harry and then turns on his side and closes his eyes. Harry switches off the light and crawls onto the bed and under the duvet. Even though he feels very tired, it still takes a while before he falls asleep; it’s been quite the day. The first chapter of his new life. He wonders what new adventures it will bring him.


	2. Chapter 2

Nick left in his Mini Cooper, but not before he’s promised Harry to visit the next weekend and he makes Harry promise to inform his mum about his new home and business.

Harry unties the ropes from the bollards and steps on board, starts the engine in one go. He mentally claps himself on the shoulder. There’s nobody around, unfortunately no other boats moored for the night, so it’s just Harry on his own, steering his girl away from the bank smoothly.

‘Too bad, nobody sees.’ He sighs disappointedly. On the other hand if he hadn’t left this smoothly, but instead had bumped into another boat, he’d probably be totally embarrassed if anyone saw. It’s another sunny day and he’s wearing bright blue flared trousers and a yellow shirt with a bow at the neck. He’s glad he’s got his favourite clothes on board to choose from. Jeans and jumpers are okay for when it’s cold, but he prefers his bright coloured shirts and trousers on warmer days. Harry slowly meanders the canal, on his way to Little Beck.

He waves at a little boy who’s cycling on a tiny bike, while his father, presumably, is guiding him while walking next to the boy. A small dog is barking at him or the boat, Harry isn’t sure.

It’s just past noon when Harry sees a sign indicating he’s arrived at Little Beck. He slowly navigates his boat to the center of the canal to pass under a low bridge, ducking his head slightly. Little Beck is a small but idyllic village with two stone bridges connecting both sides of the village while the canal gently flows through. Willow trees line the waterfront and a small row of independent shops are located on the cobbled streets at both sides of the canal. It’s one of those villages that is flooded with tourists on the weekend and during the holidays, which is perfect for business, Harry thinks. The mooring comes in view, he’s supposed to be neighbouring the bookshop and a boat called Black Velvet. He passes a traditionally red painted narrow boat which is called ‘Slow’, a very handsome man is lifting small weights on his deck. He waves with one hand, still holding the weight in his hand as he greets Harry.

‘Hi mate! Visiting for the day?’ He calls to Harry. Harry shakes his head.

‘No, I’m here to stay.’ He calls back loudly. Two heads appear on the other two boats. The young man on the Black Velvet boat with the Irish flag painted on is holding a guitar in his hands as he’s cacklin’ loudly at a remark from the guy on the books boat who not so subtly mocks Harry’s boat.

‘Oh my God! Colour vomit!’ The guy places his aviators over his eyes to accentuate his disgust of the cream, purple and pink shades of Harry’s boat. Although a little miffed by the guy’s remark, he ignores him. He has other issues at hand. In front of him are two swans who seem to mock him as well because they refuse to move to the other side, instead they swim to the mooring where Harry is supposed to steer his boat.

‘Shoo, shoo!’ He calls to the swans, making a wavy gesture with his right arm, which makes the guy on the Black Velvet cackle again, the guy on the book boat leans against the cabin on his deck, crossing his arms and smirking at Harry’s attempts to persuade the swans to move along. The man at the ‘Slow’ boat takes pity on him.

‘Just steer the boat to the side, mate. The swans will leave on their own accord, don’t worry!’ He encourages Harry. Harry bites his lip as he slowly steers his boat to the side with sweaty hands. It takes him two tries to navigate the ‘Gay Tunes’ between the Black Velvet and the the bookshop, without hurting the swans who just grunt at the boat before swimming away. He didn’t bump into the neighbouring boats. The guy from the Black Velvet is now standing on the towpath.

‘Throw your rope, I’ll help you.’ He offers and Harry does. The guy throws the rope over the bollard. Once Harry has secured the boat with the help from his Irish neighbour he introduces himself.

‘Thanks for your help, I’m Harry, Harry Styles. Nice to meet you.’ He shakes the guy’s hand.

‘I’m Niall Horan and welcome to Little Beck, Harry. Let me introduce you to the other lads. This is my other neighbour, Liam Payne.’ Niall introduces Liam who has joined them. Harry shakes Liam’s hand and thanks him for the tip about the swans.

‘You’re new at this, right?’ Liam asks friendly.

‘I am. As a matter of fact, this is my first single-handed trip on my boat.’ Harry admits. Niall glances at the boat.

‘She looks familiar.’

‘Oh, yeah! This was the Eliza?’ Harry replies quickly. He sees Niall and Liam nodding.  
‘We didn’t know the old man really; he left a couple of weeks after we came here. So you bought her from him then?’ Liam asks curiously.

‘Sort of…’ Harry decides to be a bit vague about how he became the owner of the boat. He might tell them later when he knows them a little better.

‘Gay Tunes.’ Someone from behind Harry calls. It’s his other neighbour. ‘What’s that supposed to mean?’ the guy wants to know.

‘Hi, I’m Harry.’ Harry offers his hand, but the guy just ignores him, demanding an answer.

‘I’m starting a floating record shop called ‘Gay Tunes’. Harry answers him tensely, ready to defend himself against any homophobic language coming his way.

‘Does that mean you only sell gay anthems?’

‘No, it means that I sell happy tunes, songs that will make you happy, which is different for each person. And yes, I’m gay, if that’s what you want to know. Do you have a problem with that?’ Harry crosses his arms. This conversation is becoming unpleasant very quickly.

The guy throws up his hands in defense.

‘Just asking, mate. No offense.’

‘His name is Louis Tomlinson and he can be a right prick sometimes.’ Liam shakes his head at Louis, mouthing a ‘why?’. Harry just lets it go.

‘Welcome Harry. It’s great to have another young man here and I’ll make sure to visit your shop once you’ve settled in. Let me know if you need any help at all.’ Liam offers Harry.

‘Thank you, Liam, that’s very kind of you.’

‘Well, I’m going back to my shop, see you guys later.’ Louis turns without glancing back at Niall and Harry.

‘Don’t worry about Louis. He just likes to rile people up and you, being obviously new at this whole boating thing, are just an easy target. You’ll just have to get to know him, he’s a good guy, honestly.’

‘If you say so.’ Harry replies and then sighs. ‘I guess I need to start unpacking, the boat is full of boxes waiting to be uncovered.’ Niall smiles at him.

‘I’m next door, if you need help,okay? Don’t be shy.’ Niall offers before he heads back to the Black Velvet. Harry turns and goes into the cabin; time to start unpacking. It doesn’t feel much different from any other removal he’s done in the past, except for that there are additional boxes for his new business now.

He commences with the boxes holding his clothes and shoes. He’s hanging his trousers and jackets on wooden clothes hangers on one side in his closet, they barely fit into the narrow space. He opens the next door and unfolds his pretty shirts; seeing his colourful clothing makes him smile, he can’t wait to wear them again. His socks are kept in a basket at the bottom of the closet and his T--shirts and jumpers go on the top shelf in the closet. He takes a step back and smiles; he is pleased to see his entire wardrobe fits in two closets. His shoe collection is next, they give him a little more trouble to fit all pairs of his footwear on a shoe-rack. In the end he makes them without space left for additional shoes, unfortunately. That will save him a lot of unnecessary money spent on shoes he doesn’t really need.

At the end of the afternoon he’s put his own stuff in closets and on shelves. It makes walking through the living space a lot easier without zigzagging between piles of boxes. The cardboard boxes he unfolds and stacks against the wall in the shop space. Tomorrow, he’ll start unpacking the boxes in his soon-to-open shop. Now, he’s going to relax on deck with a glass of juice and a snack.

He opens the door and steps on deck where he sits down and leans against the cabin, taking sips from his juice. He closes his eyes and enjoys the feeling of sun beams warming his face. He sighs and listens to the sounds of the village, the murmurs of people walking by on the opposite side of the canal, a car horn sounding, the pair of swans grunting while still roaming around the boats, birds twittering in the willow trees lining the towpath. He almost drifts off, when he’s awakened by Niall’s voice from the towpath.

‘Liam and I are going to grab a bite to eat at the pub. You want to join us?’

‘Oh yes, I’d love that.’ He sluggishly gets up; feeling a little drowsy from his near nap and goes inside to fetch his wallet and then closes the door behind him.

It’s crowded at the pub, but when the sturdy man behind the bar sees them, he waves them over.

‘Hello lads, what can I get you? Ah, I see a new face. I’m James, the proud owner of this establishment.’ James greets Harry. The boys sit down at the bar and order a lager each, while Harry introduces himself.

‘Ooh, a record shop right behind my pub? I’m going to be a regular customer once you’re open for business.’ James approves of Harry’s still to open shop. Harry learns that James Corden and his wife run the pub together and that the bakery next door is owned by a woman named Edith.

‘So, Harry what else do you do, besides starting a record shop?’ Niall inquires after they’ve had their second lager and have moved to a vacated booth.

‘Oh, I’m a graphic designer, I work freelance.’ Harry tells them proudly. ‘And you?’

‘I’m a studio musician, when you hear me playing on the boat, I’m probably rehearsing for some popstar’s song.’ Niall replies with a grin.

‘Anyone I might know?’

Niall sums up some very familiar names and Harry is really impressed.

‘And you?’ Harry turns to Liam.

‘I run a fitness centre on the other side of the canal, it’s in between Stevie’s spiritual shop and Taylor’s vintage clothes shop. You should come and visit some time, I’ll show you around. Do you work out?’ Liam looks Harry up and down.

‘I run and I practice yoga.’ Harry folds his hands in front of him. ‘Namasté.’ Liam and Niall grin.

‘We do yoga classes too.’ Liam is clearly recruiting Harry as a new customer for his fitness centre. Harry promises to come and check it out soon.

‘Started without me, lads?’ A loud voice comes from behind them.

‘Tommo! You made it, business booming today?’ Niall raises his glass. Louis sits down next to Liam, facing Harry.

‘I can’t complain, sold quite a few books today.’ Louis turns around and orders another round for all of them and chats animatedly with James from his seat.

Harry watches him. Louis Tomlinson is an attractive man, with his sparkling blue eyes and curvy body. Too bad he’s been an arsehole to Harry today.

‘So Harry Styles, why are you here?’ Louis turns back to them and looks Harry in the eye.

‘Niall invited me.’ Harry replies defensively. Is it a case of instant dislike that makes Louis treat him like this?

Louis smirks back at him. His eyes crinkle in the corners, which makes him even more attractive. He has sharp edged cheekbones and small pink lips that move. Harry quickly looks up again to find Louis watching him with a curious look on his face.

‘That’s not what I asked; here in Little Beck.’

‘Because Mitch told me the old residential mooring for the boat was still available?’ He utters it more as a question than a statement.

Louis sighs exaggeratedly and mutters a ‘too bad’ under his breath while he takes a sip from his beer. Niall grins and Liam shakes his head.

‘I didn’t know I needed your permission to live here.’ Harry snaps, he really starts to dislike Louis Tomlinson; no matter how attractive the man is, he’s exasperating to deal with.

Niall bursts out in laughter and Liam looks up in surprise. Louis chuckles.

‘You don’t, unfortunately.’

‘Are you always this annoying?’ Harry places his glass on the table with a thud.

‘Nah, I’m quite a nice person, right lads?’ Louis looks at Niall and Liam, who do not reply.

‘You don’t say…’ Harry picks up his glass and empties it in one go, earning a few raised eyebrows from his companions. ‘Well, it was nice chatting with you, Niall, Liam, but I think I’m going to leave. Goodnight!’ He gets up, throws money on the table to pay for his drinks and leaves the pub. He’s already had enough of Louis Tomlinson and he’s only been here for half a day. He walks down the towpath over the bridge and into the shopping street where he spots an Italian take-away. He goes in and orders a vegetarian pizza to go. Once on board he devours his pizza; he was more hungry than he realized. When he’s finished he goes to bed. Tomorrow he’s going to do some grocery shopping and try out his galley.

He’s woken by a family of ducks quacking excitedly next to his boat. Harry can’t help but smile. He stretches his arms above his head and sits up, peeks through the curtains. It promises to be another sunny day. The curtains on the bookshop boat are still closed, he only now spots the name of the boat ‘Floating Pages’; just as appropriate for Tomlinson’s business as ‘Gay Tunes’ for Harry’s. Which reminds him, besides going shopping for food, he needs to unpack a shitload of records; time to get up!

In his black trousers and bright pink shirt adorned with white polka dots, Harry trots down the towpath towards the slightly arched stone bridge. The willow trees sway gently in the soft morning breeze, the sky is a soft baby-blue; another sunny spring day. He pauses on the bridge and watches the family of ducks, that woke him up earlier this morning from his slumber, swimming in a neat row, the ducklings following their mum who navigates her family determinedly along the boats.

Harry gazes at the four boats, floating on the water. There are four residential moorings and three visitor moorings a little further down the canal. The curtains on the ‘Slow’ are open and Harry suspects Liam has already gone to work. The curtains on the ‘Black Velvet’ are still drawn; Niall must still be asleep. The ‘Gay Tunes’ stands out between her neighbours, looking cheerful in her vibrant colours; it makes Harry smile. When Harry’s gaze moves on to ‘Floating Pages’ he’s met with a grinning Louis Tomlinson, raising a mug to him in greeting. Harry quickly averts his eyes without greeting back; it’s too early to deal with Louis Tomlinson. He quickly walks over the bridge into the shopping street. The first person he sees is a tall woman in a red and white polka dot dress, in 1950’s style. He looks up. Oh, it’s the vintage clothing shop.

‘Hi!’ The woman greets him cheerfully as she turns around and places her sunglasses on her head. Her entire appearance is in the 1950’s style, complete with bright red lipstick.

‘Hi.’ Harry greets her back. She looks him up and down, clearly checking him out.

‘You’re new here, aren’t you?’ She states. ‘I like your shirt.’

Harry looks down confusedly and then it dawns on him that she’s referring to the polka dots, he smiles widely.

‘Oh! Thanks. Your dress is nice too.’ He replies politely. ‘And yes, I’ve just come to live here. That’s my boat.’ He turns to point at the ‘Gay Tunes’. On deck of the ‘Floating Pages’ he spots Louis sitting and sipping his tea or coffee as he watches the exchange between him and the woman amusedly.  
‘You found your match I see.’ Louis calls to them. Harry hears the woman huff.

‘Tomlinson is so rude.’ She says a little annoyed. ‘I’m Taylor, Taylor Swift.’

Harry turns back to face Taylor, he agrees with her, but he doesn’t tell her.

‘He’s my neighbour. My name is Harry, Harry Styles. Nice to meet you.’

‘Hi Harry.’ She bites her lip and stares at him undecidedly. ‘Please, come in. I’ll make us some coffee.’ She touches a strand of her hair. Oh boy, she’s definitely flirting with him.

‘Uhm, some other time maybe? I need to go grocery shopping and then unpack my boxes. I’m starting a record shop, you see. So… lots to do. Thank you for the invite. I’m sure we’ll meet again.’ He quickly replies already stepping away. Taylor, however, doesn’t get the hint and asks.

‘We could go have a drink at the pub some time, get to know each other.’ She insists.

‘Maybe. Nice to see you, Taylor. Have a good day.’ And Harry walks on. He hears laughter coming from the boat behind him, while he sees Taylor turning around swiftly and disappear behind the door of Taylor’s Vintage Clothes.

‘Smooth, Styles.’ Louis calls at him. Harry raises his middle finger at Louis and stops in front of Liam’s fitness centre next to Taylor’s shop and decides to go in to escape unwanted flirty women and an annoying Louis Tomlinson. Seriously, what’s the guy’s problem?

Liam is standing at the front desk with a planner in his hands, he looks up and grins when he sees Harry standing in front of him.

‘Hi! I’m so sorry about last night. Louis isn’t usually that bad.’ He immediately apologises sincerely to Harry. Harry grimaces.

‘Sorry if I find that hard to believe, I can’t seem to escape his rude remarks, not even this early in the morning.’ Harry says.

‘Oh no, what did he do now?’ Liam is taken aback a little.

‘Never mind, let’s not talk about Louis Tomlinson. So, your own fitness centre, huh.’ Harry glances around approvingly. The walls are painted a bright blue, the floors and ceilings are white and posters of people working-out cover the walls.

‘Let me give you a small tour.’ Together they walk into the fitness part of the studio. It’s quite busy. He sees James in navy shorts and a white T-shirt, red-faced and sweaty running on the treadmill.

‘You’re doing great!’ Liam encourages James, who manages to greet Harry with a breathless.

‘Hi.’

‘I’m showing Harry around, I’m hoping I can persuade him to come in here too.’ Liam winks at James. James makes an effort to smile, but it resembles a pained grimace. Liam tells him to keep up the good work and guides Harry to another room.

‘This is the part where we do group exercises. We do yoga on Tuesday evenings and Thursday mornings if you’re interested.’ They move on.There’s a spa room which looks kind of nice. Half an hour later he stands outside with a membership card, a yoga class schedule and a booking for a Spa night. None of this had been in his plans, but… oh well, he might as well. The next distraction is Liam’s next door neighbour, a spiritual shop called ‘Dreamcatcher’. Harry sighs, he really shouldn’t go inside. The scents coming from the open door are just too inviting and involuntarily his feet guide him into the shop. It’s just lovely and the smells are divine. He walks around. There’s a variety of incense sticks and holders, he needs to buy one for his living space. He loves fragrances.

‘Hello love, can I help you?’ The soft voice of a woman asks him. Harry turns around to see a middle-aged woman in a floaty black dress and long blondish hair.

‘Hi! I just saw the shop and just couldn’t resist exploring. I love fragrances.’ Harry admits with a sigh as he glances back at the incense holders. The woman smiles friendly.

‘You go and explore, love. If you need any help, just call me. My name is Stevie.’

‘I’m Harry, I’m from the new boat across the canal.’ He informs her, somehow he feels a connection between himself and the woman, resulting in blurting out his address.

‘The Gay Tunes?’ Harry nods. ‘It’s lovely, I like the colours. Are you staying in Little Beck?’

‘Yeah, I’m setting up my own business, selling vinyl records.’ He tells her excitedly.

‘Oh, I’d love to see. I still own a record player, there’s nothing like hearing a needle dancing on a record.’ There’s a hint of nostalgia in Stevie’s voice. Harry agrees with her, he loves the sound of a needle running through the grooves of a record. It sounds so much better than a cd, in his opinion, anyway.

‘Well, just let me know if you need assistance. I’ll be right behind that counter in the corner.’

Harry spends almost half an hour in the tiny shop and when he’s outside again he has a bag full of stuff in his hands that he doesn’t really need; it’s filled with an incense holder, several incense sticks in various fragrances, a windchime for his boat, a coconut shampoo and a bohemian loving heart dream catcher. So far he’s been out for over an hour and still hasn’t done any grocery shopping. He sighs, no more distractions, he needs to buy food!

When he comes back, loaded with several bags in each hand he’s greeted by his neighbour.

‘Done some shopping, mate?’ Niall sits in a chair on the grass next to the towpath. Harry sits down on the picnic bench next to Niall’s chairl.

‘Yeah, groceries and… other stuff and now I’m exhausted.’ Harry sets the bags on the grass.

‘I’ve just made coffee, you want some?’ Niall sets his guitar aside.

‘I’d love some, thank you Niall.’

Together they enjoy their coffee. Niall too, apologizes for last night and asks which shops he’s visited.

‘Ah, Stevie is great. Did you know she used to be a singer? She had several hits, you should get her records too. She was good!’ Niall says excitedly when he hears Harry’s visited ‘Dreamcatcher’. Harry is immediately interested and they talk about their musical interests for a while before they’re interrupted by Louis, who’s walking up to them after a customer left his shop.

‘What you’re talking about?’ He sits down next to Harry.

‘Music.’ Niall says.

‘Figures.’ Louis leans back on the bench against the table, stretching his toned legs clad in black skinny jeans. ‘You sure went shopping.’ He eyes the many bags in front of Harry’s feet.

‘A guy needs to eat.’ Harry answers.

‘Yeah, certainly if you want Swift to devour you.’ Louis wiggles his eyebrows.

‘What?’ Niall laughs. ‘Did I miss something?’

‘Oh fuck off! I told you I’m gay, I’m not interested in her.’ Harry snaps at Louis.

‘She sure is interested in you, mate. She almost devoured you with her eyes, she sure was hungry.’ Louis continues with a smirk.

‘Geez, do you ever stop?’ Harry wants to know. Niall is still laughing.

‘What did you tell her?’ Niall asks, wiping tears from his eyes.

‘She wanted us to meet up at the pub, I kind of … ran.’ Harry admits blushingly, which only causes Niall to have another fit of laughter and Louis joins him. ‘Anyway, I should start to unpack the boxes. And you..’ he prods a finger in Louis’ arm, with a little more power than intended. Louis grimaces and rubs his arm with his hand, while still holding his mug. ‘..have a customer.’ He motions to a woman stepping into the ‘Floating Pages’.

Harry gathers his bags and goes inside; he’s got work to do. Once he has put the groceries away in the tiny fridge and cupboard. He places the incense holder with two sticks of patchouli scent on a shelf in the living space.The dreamcatcher he hangs above his berth; how very appropriate. He walks on deck to hang the windchime on his laundry line where the bamboo tubes instantly rub against each other, creating a nice soft sound. Harry imagines himself lying on deck this summer with his eyes closed, the sound of water gently touching the boat and bamboo tubes performing percussion as he relaxes for a while. He’s already looking forward to that.

Inside the shop space he looks for the record player in the many boxes. It takes a while until he finds it. He removes the packaging and admires the retro look of the player. He plugs in the cord, connects the speakers, then picks out the first record he finds, he likes his lucky pick. He places the record on the gramophone, presses start and just watches. The arm lifts and slowly moves a little to the left and then lowers itself on the record, the needle finding the grooves effortlessly and the first notes of one of the most famous Queen songs come from the speaker; Bohemian Rhapsody, he turns up the volume and then starts to unpack the first box, lines up the wooden crates he bought for displaying the records. Each crate has a letter displayed on the front with the shop’s logo added; his own design. He has fun unpacking boxes and placing the records in their accurate crates, while Queen is playing and Harry is singing along.

On Friday night he calls his mum, he’s been postponing the dreaded call finding all kinds of stupid reasons to not call, but the shop is ready for the ‘grand’ opening tomorrow and Nick will be visiting and he did promise his friend he would call his mum. Nick has a soft spot for his mother and Harry suspects his mum does too in return; she treats him like Nick is an older son to her. Nick even texts his mum; so there’s no way he can postpone the call any longer.

‘Hi mum, how are you?’ Is the first thing he says when she picks up. She is happy to hear from him, she’s been a bit busy herself in the past few weeks, but tells him she intends to visit him in London soon. ‘Uhm… about that. I don’t live in London anymore.’ His voice is a little shaky from nerves.

‘Oh? Then where do you live?’ She asks a little stunned.

‘In Little Beck, Buckinghamshire’ he waits and then rushes. ‘On a canal boat.’ As if rushing the words out of his mouth will sooth the revelation.

‘A canal boat??!!’ Anne exclaims on the other side of the line. Harry winces at the sound. ‘Why? How?’

Harry sighs and then tells her the story of ‘how Harry became the owner of an old narrow boat’. He is sure he’s going to have to retell that story over and over again once all of his friends know he’s moved out of Nick’s flat. So far, he’s been quiet about his whereabouts.

‘You’re opening a record shop? But what about graphic designing?’ Harry senses his mum is having reservations about his new business.

‘I do both.’ He assures her. By the end of the call, his mum and sister insist on visiting next weekend. Of course Gemma had to hear their conversation since she was visiting Holmes Chapel for the weekend and sitting right beside their mother when Harry called.

When Harry opens the curtains on Saturday morning, it’s overcast outside, it looks like it’s going to be a rainy day. He pouts. It would have been nice if it had been sunny today. Tourists tend to stay indoors on dreary days.

At 9 o’clock he opens the door of the cabin and to his surprise he sees Liam, Niall and Louis waiting outside; Niall holding mugs of coffee, Louis holding fresh rolls from the bakery and Liam holding a bouquet of spring flowers. He’s speechless.

‘Are you going to let us in?’ Louis, of course, is the first to speak.

‘Yeah, yeah of course.’ Harry moves to the side and the boys step in one after the other.

‘Wow, this is nice, Harry.’ Liam compliments him. ‘These are for you.’ He hands Harry the flowers a little clumsily.

‘Why Liam, for me? I’m touched.’ Harry exaggerates and winks at Niall. Liam blushes and Niall and Louis grin.

‘For the opening of the shop, of course.’ Liam hastily adds. ‘From all of us.’

‘Thank you guys.’ Harry puts the bouquet in a small bucket he keeps under the counter and fills it with water. Niall places the tray of mugs on the counter and Louis opens the bag from the bakery. ‘With the compliments from Edith who still hasn’t seen you at her shop, which is unheard of. Shame on you, Styles.’ Louis tells him.

‘It’s more of a ‘if I don’t visit, I won’t be tempted to buy all kinds of delicacies.’ Harry sighs.

‘You can add a few more pounds, you’re skinny.’ Louis eyes him, which makes Harry blush furiously. It doesn’t matter what Louis says; whatever comes out of that loud mouth seems to affect him every time. How does Louis do that? And why does it affect Harry? He hasn’t got time to analyze now, because Niall has picked out a U2 record for the player.

‘Let’s hear some good old Irish rock music.’ He hands Harry the “War’ album and soon the space fills with Bono’s voice belting out ‘Sunday, Bloody Sunday’.

‘Good choice, Niall.’ Harry approves of his choice. They drink their coffee and eat the delicious rolls from the bakery and then the boys browse through Harry’s collection. Harry watches them curiously as he sees which albums they each inspect. Niall is an old rock/folk music fan, Liam peruses the electrical dance music section and Louis … Abba, the Grease soundtrack, but also Oasis, The Fray. He appears to have a broad taste of music genres.

Louis is the first to leave, he has his own shop to open. Before he goes he challenges Harry.

‘Let’s see who gets the most customers today. I’ll check with you tonight, mind you...only buying customers!’ And then he hops outside before Harry can utter a word.

‘Looks like you got yourself a bet.’ Niall winks.

‘Well, look at that! You’re in business already!’ Nick yells as he steps into the shop.

‘Nick, you came!’ Harry hugs Nick in greeting.

‘It looks great, H. Well done! Now, do you have a cup of coffee for a traveller from afar, I brought cupcakes.’

They sit behind the counter, drinking coffee and chatting. Nick wants to know everything about Harry’s week.

‘How did Anne take the news?’ Nick asks as he refills their mugs. Harry sighs.

‘Not too bad, actually. She’s coming next weekend for a visit.’

‘Hi!’ They are interrupted by a female voice. Taylor comes in wearing another 1950’s dress with matching shoes and bright red lips. Harry mutters a soft ‘Uh-oh.’ Nick chuckles.

‘Hello Taylor, how are you doing?’ Harry inquires politely.

‘I’m doing great. I love your cute little shop; it’s so quaint.’ She walks around, checking a few record sleeves before walking over to the counter. ‘Are you free tonight? Oh hi! I’m Taylor.’ She holds out her right hand with equally bright red fingernails to Nick. ‘Hey, aren’t you that radio guy?’

‘I’m Nick Grimshaw, your BBC Breakfast Show host. Nice to meet you.’ Nick is clearly amused.

‘Uhm… actually Nick is my guest for the weekend.’ Harry wraps his arm exaggeratedly around Nick’s shoulder, leaning his head against Nick’s and hopes Taylor gets the hint.

‘Oh.’ She eyes them suspiciously. ‘Are you two together?’ she hesitantly asks.

‘We are.’ Harry replies quickly with a smile while he squeezes Nick’s shoulder, signaling for Nick not to contradict him.

‘Oh….. I see. Well, see you around.’ Taylor leaves the shop as fast as she can. Harry sighs in relief.

‘Well, well… any other predators you need rescuing from?’ Nick turns to Harry with a grin.

‘Nope, just an annoying neighbour who sells books. He really gets on my nerves.’

‘Really… let me check.’ Before Harry can stop him, Nick is already out of the cabin. Harry shakes his head. He has another customer, an older man looking a specific folk album. Harry helps him, he doesn’t have it in stock, but offers to order it for him. While he’s writing down the man’s name and phone number, he hears Nick coming back with a huge grin on his face. Harry promises to call the customer as soon as the record is available in his shop.

‘Tomlinson is a riot, honestly Harry, I don’t know what you have against him. I like him!’ Nick says excitedly.’Have you been in the shop? Have you seen the sections he keeps?’

‘No, I haven’t been in… yet, but I’m getting the feeling you’re going to make me.’ Harry replies a little miffed.

‘I asked him to join us for dinner at the pub tonight. You really should get to know him better.’

‘Well, why don’t you have dinner with him, then. Woo him…although, I don’t even know if he’s into men or women.’ Harry snaps. Seriously, why does everyone like Louis Tomlinson?

‘I don’t either, but he’s sassy and funny. I don’t see why you find him annoying.’ Nick takes a seat behind the counter and shoos Harry away. ‘Go see the bookshop and be nice.’

‘Fine.’ Harry stamps out of his boat and mutters ‘traitor’.

‘I heard that.’ Nick calls to him. He’s changing records; apparently he’s in the mood for Michael Jackson. He turns up the volume and Michael states he ‘Wanna be startin' somethin'‘. ‘Another row most likely.’ Harry finishes Michael Jackson’s title to himself as he reluctantly enters ‘Floating Pages.’

‘Well, look at what the cat dragged in.’ Louis greets him. Harry rolls his eyes. ‘Did your dj friend send you here? He’s a lot of fun.’

‘Apparently you two get along fine. How come you don’t pester him, huh? Is it because he’s a national celebrity? Or is it because he can be just as annoying as you?’ Harry spits.

Louis just raises his hands in defense. ‘Sorry, I said something. Now, how can I help you?’

‘I’m supposed to check out your shop; Nick seemed to be impressed. So…. that’s why I’m here.’

Louis motions for Harry to go and explore. Harry starts on the left and immediately understands what Nick meant. Instead of looking for historical novels or children’s books. He’s given the various genres hilarious names. The classic literature section is called ‘Old English books by dead authors’, the culinary section is ‘Wok in progress’ and the romance novels section displaying half naked couples on the covers is called ‘Wardrobe malfunctions’’ and the erotic section is called ‘Panting and moaning’. Harry can’t help but giggle. He sure has been inventive.

‘Looking for some panting and moaning?’ Louis whispers behind him. He’s standing a little too close, Harry can feel Louis’ breath in his neck, he can smell his seductive cologne. He shivers involuntarily.  
‘I….’ Harry stutters, a little tense.

‘Are you?’ Louis’ lips almost touch Harry’s neck. Harry suddenly feels very hot, his cheeks are on fire and when Louis softly brushes his bare arm it’s like he’s been hit by an electric wire, as if a spark emits from his body. Is Louis just teasing him, see if he can rile Harry up once more?

‘Excuse me!’ Someone calls in the shop. Louis immediately turns around to help his new customer. Harry takes a deep breath, feeling both relieved and disappointed about the sudden interruption. What did Louis mean? Was he teasing him, or was he flirting with Harry? Harry flees the shop in a hurry.

‘Nice to see you. Come back again.’ Louis says as if Harry is just another customer instead of his neighbour. Still feeling flushed he almost runs into his own shop.

‘Whoah, what happened to you?’ Nick asks.

‘Nothing… just nothing.’ Harry says and picks up a few stray record sleeves and puts them in their right place. Nick doesn’t ask again.

‘So Harry started bidding on the boat and the next morning he found out, his bid was accepted.’ Nick tells Louis, Liam and Niall who’ve joined them at the pub for a meal and a few drinks. Harry groans and rests his head on his arms on the table. So much for telling his story in his own time. His neighbours burst out in laughter.

‘That’s hilarious, mate.’ Niall hiccups.

‘I think you’re being very brave to change your life so drastically.’ Liam praises Harry.

‘Thank you, Liam. I’m glad someone is on my side.’ Harry says. Louis snorts. Then Harry turns to Nick.

‘You are no longer my best friend, you traitor.’ He pouts. Nick wraps an arm around him and kisses the top of his head.

‘I love you too, H.’

Louis observes them quietly, but doesn’t comment. Harry avoids looking at Louis. He’s feeling so confused about what happened earlier that day between them. He still can’t decide if Louis intended to unsettle Harry or if he’d been flirting. Louis has been rather quiet tonight. He hasn’t made any of his usually snide remarks.


	3. Chapter 3

Harry soon adapts to his new life as a liveaboard; which even amazes himself. He finds a routine that works for him. His shop is open five days a week, unless he has a graphic design assignment to complete; working freelance is still his main source of income. The shop is doing well. He’s designed flyers and a contact card. Each customer receives a contact card with their purchase and he’s been walking around the village asking shops if he could leave a flyer behind; most shop owners were happy to oblige, since Harry’s business is not exactly a threat to their business. Harry has the only music shop in the village.

He managed to find Stevie’s first album and proudly presented it to her when he paid another visit to ‘Dreamcatcher’: he’s become a regular visitor, sometimes they just chat, sometimes Harry buys another set of incense sticks. Stevie happily signed her album for him. Harry plays it often in his shop; he likes the songs a lot.

On Tuesday nights he goes to yoga class, his teacher, turns out, is Stevie which is a bonus, the downside is Taylor… she’s in his yoga class too, even though she’s stopped the flirting, probably guessed Harry’s preference for men, she still is very much present in an exaggerated way. Harry tries to keep away from her.

He hasn’t seen much of Louis lately, according to Niall he’s on a buying trip for his shop. Niall disappears for a few days too; recording in a studio in London and Liam is at the fitness centre a lot of the time.

The bakery is another shop he likes to visit, he tries to keep it to a minimum, because he really has trouble to resist the delicious cupcakes Edith has on display at the shop.

Anne and Gemma were excited about Harry’s boat and the surroundings, much to Harry’s relief. He promised to visit Anne as soon as he’s settled a little more in Little Beck.

On Saturday nights Harry and Niall usually have dinner and drinks at James’ pub, sometimes Liam and Louis join them when they don’t have other obligations. Liam sometimes visits his parents in Wolverhampton on weekends and Louis visits his siblings in Yorkshire once a month. Something has shifted between Harry and Louis since Harry’s visit at the bookshop. Louis still makes the occasional remark, but he seems to mostly keep out of Harry’s way, which might be just as well. Harry still doesn’t know how to deal with Louis; they’re just being weird around each other. Liam and Niall frown at their interactions but don’t say anything to either Louis or Harry about their odd behaviour towards each other.

‘Are you going to the music festival in Bridgewater Willows this weekend?’ Niall comes barging in on Wednesday morning.

‘Goodmorning Niall!’ Harry greets him from behind the counter where he’s just changing records. ‘And what festival?’

‘It’s a music festival; lots of performers, all kinds of music.’ Niall continues, he throws a flyer at Harry. Harry reads it with interest.

‘Sounds fun.’ Harry replies while he presses start on the record player. He reads the flyer again.

‘Good, because I’ve reserved you a visitor mooring on Saturday.’ Niall smiles. Harry’s head snaps up.

‘What?’ He asks, not sure he understands.’ A visitor mooring?’

‘Yeah? You do have a rovers licence, don’t you?’ Harry nods. ‘So I thought it would be good for business and we can have some fun too.’

‘Hold on! I have to take the boat there?’ Harry tries to comprehend what Niall is telling him.

‘Of course, silly. How else are you going to sell your records? And I’m coming with you.’ Niall has it all planned out for them.

‘Fuck….’ Harry says, already feeling the tension. He’s going to have to sail the ‘Gay Tunes’ to Bridgewater Willows.

‘Hey… it’s alright, yeah? I mean I was a bit forward booking a space for you, but I thought you’d like the opportunity to get your business known to music lovers.’ Niall frowns a little.

‘Yeah, no… I mean yeah it’s a great opportunity, but uhm… I’m a little worried sailing the boat again.’ Harry admits with a sigh. Niall’s face lights up.

‘Oh mate, don’t worry, I’m a pro… I’ll help. Let’s do this, we’re going to have so much fun!’

When Niall leaves, Harry takes a deep breath; navigating his boat is still very challenging. He just hopes Niall is as good as he claims he is.

  
‘I see a boat on the river, it’s sailing away.’ Louis sings the Boney M song with a huge grin plastered on his face as Harry finally manages to turn the ‘Gay Tunes’ without thumping ‘Floating Pages’ and ‘Black Velvet’. Niall claps Harry on the shoulder after Harry’s glared at Louis. Liam is waving at them and tells them to have a good time.

Niall gives him a few tips on the way to Bridgewater Willows, but mostly they enjoy the journey in sunny weather. Harry is wearing a lavender suit with a lavender shirt, which of course was remarked on by Louis, pretending his eyes hurt at the sight of Harry wearing these colours on his boat. Harry even found a lovely tiara at the local thrift shop which he’s placed on his curls; he likes his look a lot. Niall is wearing blue jeans and a white T-shirt. He brought his guitar too.  
‘I can’t go to a music festival without bringing my guitar.’ He said when he brought the instrument on board.

Bridgewater Willows is already very lively when they arrive. Decorative flags with bright colours are woven through tree branches and between lampposts. A stage is set up in the middle of the square, where two young men and a woman are soundchecking. Another woman fiddles with the cord of the microphones, while another man is checking the balance of the speakers. There’s a large blackboard on a tripod announcing the festival and the performing artists. Approximately ten market stalls are lined up at the edge of the square, selling food and drinks, cd’s, hats and sunglasses, band T-shirts. Harry can feel the excitement rising in him.

‘This looks amazing!’ He yells at Niall who has just jumped off the boat to secure the rope.

‘It does, doesn’t it! I’ll get us some coffee and then we’ll set up your shop.’ He yells back and is already heading for the food and drinks stall.

Harry turns off the engine and locks the door of his boat, he jumps off the boat just as Niall returns with their coffees.

‘You want to go and explore before we open up?’ Niall asks as he hands Harry his cup.

‘Yeah, let’s go!’ Harry replies excitedly and immediately heads for the stall that sells band T-shirts. He sighs a little when he sees that most shirts are a dull grey or black.

‘I do have a Pink Floyd Marquee Poster women’s T-shirt somewhere. Would you be interested in that?’ The girl behind the stall asks with a smile when Harry disappointedly points at the boring colours of the shirts.

‘Oh, yes. Can I see it?’ Harry’s face brightens at the mention of the possibility. The girl rummages in a cardboard box and triumphantly pulls out the fore mentioned shirt. She removes the plastic cover and folds out the shirt.

‘Wow! I love it!’ Harry’s eyes sparkle at the sight of the gorgeous T-shirt. ‘What size is it?’

‘Medium. It should fit you; it might be a bit tight over your shoulders, though.’ She comes from behind the stall holding the shirt and tells Harry to turn around. The girl holds the shirt against his shoulders and stretches it lightly.

‘It would fit; you’ve got a good body. You can pull this off for certain.’ She smiles at both Niall and Harry. Then she holds it in front of Harry.

‘What do you think Niall?’ Harry wants Niall’s opinion.

‘Mate, this is exactly you. It’s pink, it’s a band shirt; perfect attire for your shop!’ Niall approves.

‘Oh, you own a shop?’ The girl asks after Harry tells her he’ll buy the shirt.

‘Yeah, it’s the purple and cream canal boat over there. It’s called ‘Gay Tunes’; I sell vinyl records.’ He says proudly.

‘Oh! That’s so cool! Are you in business today? I’d love to check it out myself.’ She says brightly and hands Harry his shirt once he’s paid for it in cash.

‘I am. You’re welcome to come browsing through the collection. I’ve got both old and new records, rare items too.’

She promises to drop by later in the day. Harry holds his bag, content with his new shirt. His coffee has gone cold in the meantime and he throws it away. The cup he throws in a bin nearby. They check out the blackboard; they scan the names for any familiar ones. Niall spots a band, he vaguely recalls from previous editions of the festival.

‘Oh look! Stevie is performing too; she didn’t mention it at all.’ Harry frowns. Why didn’t she tell him she was going to perform?

‘Didn’t know she still sang. We’ll definitely have to see her.’ Niall says casually not looking very surprised. Harry raises an eyebrow, but Niall just shrugs.

They go back to the boat to open ‘Gay Tunes’. Harry sets the A-frame blackboard he always uses to announce that the shop is open and what special offers he has that day. Today he makes sure he’s offering Stevie’s old records. In the past few weeks he’s managed to get a hold of copies of all of her old albums and has become a true fan himself, he loves her voice and the 70s and 80s vibe of the albums.

Niall has put The Script’s ‘No Sound Without Silence’ on the record player, typical. He always chooses Irish bands and artists.

By noon it’s crowded in the square and Niall and Harry have sold quite a few records, the girl from the T-shirt stall bought two records from the shop and asked for flyers she could hand out at her stall, in exchange she gave him her card.

They enjoy listening to the different genre of bands and artists performing on the stage. Niall grabs them burgers and coke for lunch from a stall on the square. They sit on a blanket in the grass next to the towpath, taking a break, but still able to see if someone’s going into the shop. The band that is now playing is singing about river folk; they can relate to the lyrics.

The afternoon is even busier; they sell an amazing amount of records which surprises Harry quite a bit. He didn’t expect to sell so much.

‘Told you, it’s good for business.’ Niall claps him on the shoulder as they close the shop for half an hour. Harry has put up a sign to tell the potential customers he’s going to open again at 8.30 p.m They walk to the stage where Stevie just started her set with one of Harry’s favourite songs ‘Rooms on Fire’. Stevie is dressed in another one of her floaty dresses, a bright red long dress, she’s wearing a tiara too. Niall grins.

‘Tiara is the new fashion?’ He whispers at Harry. Harry nods and grins back at Niall. The stage is now lit with strings of fairy lights that is so fitting for Stevie and her songs. Harry can’t help but dance to the songs and sing-a-long softly. He’s not the only one; several older women dance and sing too. It’s just that Harry is a lot younger and dressed a little differently from the women around them, that makes him stand out. He gets the odd look from people in the audience. Harry is used to getting those. He always had a different opinion about men’s fashion than his friends and classmates, he’s not bothered. He enjoys Stevie’s performance. She’s noticed him too and winks at him and gives him a little wave.

By the end of the set, she announces she has a guest for the last song.

‘Niall Horan!’ She greets Niall as he walks upon the stage with his guitar around his neck. Harry’s mouth falls open.Stevie embraces Niall and then announces the song. ‘This is ‘Leather and Lace’’.

“You didn’t expect that, did you?’ He hears a very familiar voice behind him. Louis is standing behind him, Harry turns around shortly to see both Louis and Liam standing behind him. He wants to know how come they’re here, but he doesn’t want to miss Niall and Stevie performing together either so he turns his head back and watches the duo. They sound amazing together, he is in awe. Also, he really needs to talk to his so called new friends. Why was he the only who didn’t know Stevie was going to perform? And how come Niall hid this performance from him? And why are Liam and Louis here? None of them ever said anything. He feels a little left out all of a sudden and it makes him feel sad. Nothing will ever change. His entire life consists of fleeting friendships. Is it a lack of social skills that always make him the one to be left out, standing on the sidelines watching or is it his bold choices of outfits, his preferences for the more ‘girly’ considered sports and hobbies that make people shy away from him after a while. Except for Nick, he considers Nick a good friend; Nick accepts Harry the way he is. So far he’s the only one who stuck around.

Liam and Louis are the first to congratulate Niall and Stevie on their performance, walking past Harry on their way to the stage without glancing back at Harry or asking him to join them. Louis and Stevie seem to know each other quite well. He hugs her like an old friend and tells her he knew she’d be good even if it had been too long since she’d performed in public. A few other people are gathering around them too, complimenting Stevie on her performance. Harry feels a little uncomfortable standing there, watching them; they don’t seem to miss him. He slowly walks away from the small group that is now surrounding them and goes back to his boat. He unlocks the door and switches on the light. He feels lonely. It’s clear to him that, although they tolerate him, he isn’t really part of their group. He’s the newbie, the odd one. A feeling so familiar to him. He’d been so sure he found a friend in Niall at least. The festival has lost its appeal; he wants to be alone.

‘Harry?’ Niall comes in grinning. ‘Did you like it?’

‘Yes Niall. You sounded good together.’ Harry replies stiffly. Niall looks at him in confusion.

‘What’s wrong?’ He asks frowning.

‘Nothing. I just wished someone had told me. None of you guys nor Stevie bothered to tell me about all of this. Why? I thought we were friends, but apparently I’m wrong. My mistake. I appreciate your help today, but if it’s all the same to you. I’d like to be alone now, please.’ Harry replies quietly, realising he might sound a tad dramatic, but it’s how he feels.

‘Harry, please don’t be like this; we didn’t mean any harm. It was supposed to be a surprise.’ Niall says, clearly unsure of what to do.

‘A surprise, it was; you succeeded. Now, please go, join your friends.’ Harry presses.

‘Are you sure? Don’t you want me to come with you back to Little Beck?’

‘I’m sure I can handle sailing on my own, I think I’m going sail for a bit. Explore the Grand Union Canal, see other places.’ Harry says.

‘Harry… it was a surprise for you, I hope you understand we didn’t intend to shut you out.’ Niall tries again.

‘Surprise… you failed. I don’t like to be the constant object of teasing, mocking and laughter. I can tolerate it only for so long; I’m still a human with feelings. I understand that I’m a little different than other guys, but I thought I found a friend in you and Liam. Seeing you guys tonight I know I was only tagging along and being tolerated just because we’re neighbours with boats. I need to be on my own for a while. So …, just let me be, yeah?’ He finishes with a sigh.

‘I’ll get my things and drive back with Liam and Louis.’ Niall goes inside the living space and grabs his bag. His guitar is hanging on his back. ‘Be careful, H. Even though you don’t believe me. We all care about you, we really do. Sail safely.’ Without another glance Niall leaves ‘Gay Tunes’. And Harry is alone, truly alone. He decides to stay the night and then leave in the morning exploring other places, learn how to navigate the “Gay Tunes’ properly on his own, without the help of others. He doesn’t reopen the shop for the night. Instead he goes to bed and listens until the last of the crowd leave and the laughter and singing subsides. When it’s finally silent, he falls asleep.

He quietly leaves the next morning. It still is very early; Bridgewater Willows is still asleep except for an old man walking his dog, greeting Harry from the towpath as Harry steers the ‘Gay Tunes’ slowly to the centre of the canal moving further north, away from the villages he’s come to know these past months, sailing towards the unknown with a sad feeling in his heart. He loves Little Beck, it has become home, but right now he needs to be away from the people surrounding him there. His rovers licence will allow him to roam around for a while.

His first new obstacle are the locks in front of him. He’s read how to operate them single-handedly, but now he’s got to bring his knowledge into practice. His manual tells him that locks are quite simple things; the boat goes in and then his crew will shut the gates behind the boat. Harry’s got no crew, obstacle number one.

Harry is going up, so he needs to let the water from the higher level in the lock and then has to wait until the water in the lock is level with that above before proceeding on the higher level. It sounds, indeed, simple, but without help he’s going to need to open the sluices himself. He follows the safety tips in the manual; open the sluices cautiously; you don’t want to flood your boat accidentally. Good tip, he’s going to remember that one.

To avoid sinking or capsizing your boat, remember to keep the boat forward of the top lock gate cill. You will find the word 'cill' and white lines marked on the lock walls and warning signs will be placed on lock gates. He’ll do that too. Now onto the lock etiquette, which is a bit challenging. The advice is to share a lock with other boats if possible, but… there’s no other boat in view on either side. He also needs to check for any rubbish that could get jammed in the gates. He only sees an empty packaging of crisps floating next to the boat. He happily pulls it out with his boat hook; he isn’t sure if a sole small crisps package can cause a lot of trouble, but just to be on the safe side… besides, he’s environmental conscious. He throws the package in his bin and then realises his next move will be far from environmental friendly; he’s going to waste at least up to 56,000 gallons of water just for the ‘Gay Tunes’ to move upwards on the canal. So much for water conservation. He feels a little guilty. How do other boats men do this? Do they wait until another boat arrives? Harry doesn’t know and the manual doesn’t mention that he has to wait until more boats will go up the canal.

He reads and rolls his eyes at the next tip; never dangle your arms and legs over the side of the boat or the lock to avoid being crushed between your boat and the lock side; duh! Not that he has time to do such a stupid thing. He’s got too many things to do and think of. He’s just glad that it’s just one lock and not one of those tricky staircase locks, which he’s sure he will encounter one day in the future, but not on his own. One day he will hopefully find his knight on a white horse, or in his case rather an experienced handsome canal boats man to love, hold and teach him how to get through staircase locks safely; or maybe he should ask Mitch to teach him instead. The handsome canal boats man might still be a long time in the future and Harry needs to learn how to navigate through those tricky locks long before that. Louis Tomlinson came close to the handsome part of the boats man dream. Harry sighs and goes back to focusing on the task at hand. Opening the sluices is taking him quite some time, he is probably a bit too careful. Then he has to wait … a loooong time for the water to reach the desired level so he can open the gates and move on. About an hour and a half later he leaves the lock behind him and he pats himself on the shoulder with his left hand. He’s done it and he’s proud of himself!

Slowly he floats through the canal enjoying the journey, it’s June and everywhere he looks he sees bright green foliage, wildflowers blooming on the banks of the river, birds tweeting their songs; Harry feels his spirits lift a little. He greets a couple passing him on an oncoming boat.

Late in the afternoon he finds a visitor mooring in a market town. He locks the Gay Tunes and walks around the busy town. Harry crosses the Market Square to a pub that looks inviting; the front of the pub is laden with climbers and hanging baskets loaded with colourful flowers making the pub look like a picture in a storybook. He treats himself to a glass of wine and observes people crossing the square. It’s almost as busy as it was in Bridgewater Wells yesterday. His mood dims at the thought of last night’s happenings. It had been such a lovely day, he’d had so much fun and had even sold a lot of records with Niall’s help. How could he have been so mistaken, thinking he’d made friends when clearly they didn’t view it quite that way. He really doesn’t understand why he wasn’t in on their little secret. Was it really a surprise, like Niall claimed it was? Why? What if Harry had declined the invitation to sail to Bridgewater Willows for the festival? Would the surprise have been in vain? No, Stevie still would have sung and the boys still would have gone to the festival without him and they would have enjoyed themselves just as much without Harry’s presence. It probably would have been equally painful, because in both cases Harry would have been left out of their little secret.

He sighs, perhaps he’s been a little too dramatic, but he can’t help shake the feeling that he’s not really part of their group.

Liam is nice and friendly. And Louis… he’s just being awkward and annoying lately, which infuriates Harry. He doesn’t know if he prefers the Louis before the bookshop incident or the Louis after. He finds it hard to deal with Louis when he’s teasing Harry repeatedly, but the distant, quiet and awkward version of the man is outright confusing. Harry really doesn’t understand the ways of Louis Tomlinson.

And as for Stevie, she is friendly and lovely, but she does keep a certain distance between them. Is Harry fanboying too hard?

He stays at the market town for another week, his shop is doing great. He sells his entire Rolling Stones stock, which is telling! Occasionally other canal boats stay over for the night and he has interesting conversations with true ‘river folk’; generations of families who’ve been cruising the inland waterways for decades. Their way of life. Harry finds it fascinating, although he can’t quite understand what it’s like to live with an entire family on a boat, always surrounded by parents and siblings. He’s sure he and Gemma would have been at each other’s throats often if they’d been growing up on a boat together.

After the little market town he travels a little further north and sails to Aylesbury where he stays for a few nights.

On Friday night he’s invited by one of his customers to come to open mic night at a pub. He has a great night listening to the artists singing famous classics and songs of their own. But when he hears a duo singing the lyrics to ‘Whenever I call you “Friend”, he’s almost crying.

It hits him hard when he realises how much he misses Little Beck, his morning walks to Edith’s bakery, the food and the pints at James’ pub, his spot at the towpath, morning coffee with Niall, Liam’s passion for his fitness centre, the smells of “Dreamcatcher’; he even misses Taylor’s attempts to become ‘friends’ with him and most of all, he misses Louis’ comments, their banter, the teasing, the competition between the shops. It’s time to head ‘home’ to Little Beck. Harry decides he’s going to return tomorrow.

His plans come crashing when he returns to the “Gay Tunes’ around midnight; at first he thinks he’s had a pint too many and that he sees things that aren’t there, but when he approaches the boat slowly, trying to take in the scene in front of him, he almost falls to his knees in shock. In the dim light of the lamppost he sees a battered ‘Gay Tunes’. In his absence vandals have attacked his lovely boat. The windows are smashed and there’s graffiti everywhere, aggressive and homophobic texts are sprayed all over the ‘Gay Tunes’. With tears in his eyes he scans the boat using the light on his mobile. Whoever did this has since long disappeared. The ‘Gay Tunes’ is the only boat tonight at the mooring, it’s unlikely someone has seen the vandal who has caused this horrible scene. With heavy feet he drags himself to the door, which surprisingly isn’t damaged. In a clear moment he calls the police, explaining with a shaky voice what has happened. The woman on the line speaks gently to him, tells him not to touch anything and to wait for the police to arrive. When he presses ‘end call’, he sits down at the bench opposite the mooring, unable to avert his gaze from his beloved boat. She looks so unloved, beaten up and just generally sad, bobbing in the water. The more Harry shines the light of his phone on the sprayed on text that cover the cabin of the boat, he realises the ‘Gay Tunes’ has been a victim of a homophobic bastard while Harry had been away. With a shock he realises, what could have happened if he’d been on the boat all by himself. Different scenarios come to mind from the most optimistic ‘nothing would have happened at all’ to the most awful ‘he could have been attacked and be injured gravely’. Fortunately his thoughts are interrupted by an arriving police vehicle. The pair of police officers accompany him to the boat and scan the deck and the surroundings for any traces the attacker may have left. One of the officers opens the door to the boat and steps in, switching on the light, Harry follows.

After a thorough inspection they conclude that nothing is missing, all of Harry’s belongings are still in place, the cash register hasn’t been touched and the tiny safe in his cabin where he keeps any cash customers pay with, is still locked. Except for broken windows and shards of glass scattered around, mainly in the shop area, the inside of the boat has escaped the attacker’s rage.

The policemen leave, after Harry has assured them, he’ll be alright on the boat and they promise to surveil regularly at night to make sure he’s alright. The windows are covered with wooden planks to keep any burglars from coming in, the glass is still covering the surfaces, but he can deal with that tomorrow. He’s so tired he only wants to go to sleep. In his berth he lies awake for a while, mulls over the events and makes a list of things to do tomorrow.

First thing he does in the morning is to call his insurance company to file the incident and the damage. Next he calls Mitch Rowland; with a shaky voice he tells Mitch what happened and if he can bring in the ‘Gay Tunes’ to the wharf to assess the damage. Mitch tells him he’ll come by in the morning to check if the boat is still able to sail safely.

Harry starts sweeping up the glass in the shop area, his hands protected by gloves.He hears a car approaching; it’s probably Mitch. Harry throws the glass in the bin and leans the broom against the wall, then walks out of the door.

It isn’t Mitch; two men jump out of the car. Harry’s heart beats in his throat when he sees who they are. It’s Niall and … Louis.

‘Are you alright?’ Niall shouts as he almost comes running to Harry. Louis stands frozen as he takes in the exterior of the ‘Gay Tunes’. Niall wraps Harry in a tight hug.

‘I’m okay, I think.’ Harry replies quietly when Niall releases him. Louis walks slowly towards them with tears in his eyes.

‘Fuck!’ He breathes out when he stands in front of Harry, the shock clearly in his wet eyes. Seeing Louis close to tears is what triggers Harry’s own tears and he starts sobbing. Louis wraps both his arms around him, cradles him softly, while whispering all kinds of apologies, encouragements and unintelligible words in Harry’s ear, between his own sobs.

  
In the meantime Niall has walked back to the car and comes back with two bags and a backpack. Louis and Harry pull away from each other, both wiping their eyes with the sleeves of their shirts.

‘Shit, mate.’ Niall says as they walk onto the boat.

‘Yeah.’ Harry takes them to the living area. They sit down and Niall unloads the contents of the plastic bags; coffee and Danish pastries. ‘We brought breakfast, we figured you probably haven’t eaten since …. This.’ He waves his arm in the air.

‘No, I haven’t. Wait… how do you guys know what happened?’ Harry suddenly asks a little confused.

‘Mitch was at Niall’s, checking on the hatch that refused to close.’ Louis replies. ‘As soon as we heard what happened, Mitch went back to the wharf to collect a few things. He’ll be here soon. Niall and I just figured you might want help and some company, despite that we left on bad terms. Which brings me to what I want to say.’ He turns to Harry and grabs both his hands. Harry frowns a little, unsure of what to expect. ‘I’m so very sorry for my annoying behaviour towards you. It started off as a joke and then it just became… a habit whenever we interacted. I can be annoying, but I’ve been never as bad as I’ve been with you. I am so very sorry that I hurt you, I never intended for that to happen. I actually miss you, miss having ‘Gay Tunes’ lying next to ‘Floating Pages’, I miss the music coming from the shop. Without you it’s not the same, so please, accept my apology and I will try very hard to be a nice neighbour, a good friend if you’ll allow me. Please, come back to Little Beck, Harry.’ It’s quite the speech. Harry looks up at Niall who is smiling encouragingly at him. Again Harry’s eyes fill with tears and he nods a yes. Niall and Louis wrap their arms around him in a hug.

‘Well, well, look at that!’ Mitch walks in with his gearbox in his hands. “Hi Harry. I’m so sorry to see what’s happened here. I’ll check for any other damage. If she’s good to sail, you bring her in and we’ll fix her.’

“Thanks Mitch for coming, I appreciate it.’ Harry untangles himself from the other boys with a watery smile.

‘She’s fine to go. So if you’re up for it, you can come to the wharf today.’ Mitch says when he’s finished and he’s drinking a mug of coffee.

‘I hope I’m ready.’ Harry says, still feeling shaken and unsure after the incident.

‘We said we’re here to help and we will.’ Niall says. ‘I’ll help get things ready at the wharf for you. Louis is sailing with you to the wharf; he’s an experienced boatsman, he’ll help you get to the wharf safely.’ Louis raises his backpack to indicate he’s indeed, staying.

‘Oh boys!’ Harry sighs gratefully. ‘Thank you so much. I could kiss you both. “

‘I decline, but I’m sure Louis won’t mind a kiss from you.’ Niall winks teasingly at Louis, who blushes. Harry raises an eyebrow. Interesting, he thinks. Nevertheless, he quickly gets up and plants a sloppy kiss on Niall’s cheek and says.

‘I’m so sorry too for thinking you weren’t a friend. You are a friend, a good one and I can’t wait to sail back and nestle ‘Gay Tunes’ between the Black Velvet and Floating Pages again. I too missed you, Liam, Louis, the pub, the bakery, ‘Dreamcatcher’. Hell, I even miss Taylor Swift.’ He grins widely. Both Niall and Louis erupt in laughter, Mitch smiles at the friends and tells them to sail safely and he’ll see them at the wharf.

Soon after Niall leaves too and Harry and Louis prepare the ‘Gay Tunes’ for departing. They decide on taking turns sailing the boat. Louis will take her through the locks.

‘Maybe I should paint her a more traditional colour.’ Harry says when they’re waiting in the sluice for the water to dissipate through the gates until the water on both sides of the locks is on the same level.

‘Harry, no! You’re not going to change the colours because of some idiot. The ‘Gay Tunes’ is you, don’t change her appearance. You love the purples and pinks of your boat. She would not be the same in other colours.’ Louis says heatedly.

‘I understand what you’re saying, but I can’t help thinking what would have happened if I had been on the boat while she got attacked. Would I have been attacked too? I’m a little scared, Louis.’ Harry admits quietly.

‘Oh Harry, love. I understand. I just don’t think you’d be happy if you’d painted her in other colours, just because someone thought it necessary to make a point with vandalizing the ‘Gay Tunes’; there always will be homophobes, I know, I’ve had my share too.’ Louis continues.’ I had someone ripping books in the gay section of the shop, just because he didn’t like the look of the section. He even hit me with one of the books and called me names. I restored the section. I even made it bigger and got more gay novels and it felt good. I’m not ashamed and so shouldn’t you be. You’re you. ‘Gay Tunes’ is your boat, stay true to yourself.’

Harry smiles at Louis’ heartfelt words.

‘You’re right.’ he tells Louis. Louis smiles too and navigates the boat through the gates. Harry observes him for a while. If he’s honest, he finds Louis very attractive, not just because he looks so manly steering Harry’s boat over the canal. Louis is the owner of a nice curvy body, sharp cheekbones and heavenly blue eyes. Now that he’s getting to know another side of Louis, he actually takes interest in his neighbour in a more sexual way. He’s eyeing Louis’ bum in the white shorts, they’re a little snug in that area, but oh so lovely.

‘Harry Styles, are you watching my bum?’ Louis catches him with a smirk. Harry bites his lip, smilingly.

‘I am… it looks great in those shorts.’ Louis guffaws.‘It does, hmm?’

Louis winks at him. Harry laughs.

‘You know perfectly well that your bum is your best asset, Louis Tomlinson.’ He winks back at Louis. ‘And I’m not ashamed for checking it out.’

Louis blushes and giggles softly. Harry smiles contentedly. Despite the awful state his boat is in, he feels a little better, now that his friends have come to his rescue. His friends… he treasures the words deep inside his heart. Friendship comes in peculiar ways.

Floating gently down the canal they reach Rowland’s Wharf late in the afternoon. Louis fetches them dinner from the nearest pizza restaurant, while Harry goes over technicalities with Mitch.

It’s a warm summer night; they eat their pizzas on deck, which is covered with a rug, to hide the offending sprayed on comments. Harry has found a bottle of red wine in his pantry and together they sip from their glasses as swans and ducks swim by peacefully. A soft breeze rustles the bright green leaves of the nearby trees.

‘It’s so peaceful here, I could lie here for hours just listening to the sounds of nature.’ Harry closes his eyes to fully enjoy the moment.

‘Me too. It’s been too long since I sailed the “Floating Pages”. Louis leans against the cabin gazing at the couple of swans making their way to the bank.

‘Do you have a rovers licence?’

‘I have, I did travel a bit when I got the boat first, but since I found my residential at Little Beck, I don’t feel the need to travel around. I like it there. People know where to find my shop. I’m not the stereotype ‘River folk’ person, I guess.’ Louis explains with a smile.

‘I’m done travelling for a while too. I’m still shaken about last night. I think I prefer to stay in one place, surrounded by familiar faces.’ Harry sighs. Louis places a hand over Harry’s.

‘We’ll fix her and you’ll be sailing proudly once she’s restored, I promise.’

Harry looks at him, there’s a warm look in Louis’ eyes and without thinking Harry leans in to kiss Louis on the lips, just briefly. When he pulls back, Louis softly lays his hand on Harry’s neck and pulls him back in. Louis kisses back. It’s soft and romantic as they explore each other’s lips.

‘I like you.’ Louis says for the second time that day. ‘A lot. I still regret that I’ve been an arse to you for so long, especially that day when you first came into my shop.’ Harry leans his head against Louis’ shoulder. ‘I did kind of fancy you from the moment you shoo shoo’d those swans away, to be honest, but… well, I guess that I didn’t really know how to act around you, so I just kept doing what I do best; riling people up.’ Louis confesses shyly.

‘Let’s not talk about it anymore. Let’s start anew. I’d like that very much… I like you too.’ Harry tilts his head and softly smiles at Louis.

Louis places a soft kiss on Harry’s head.

‘You’re a sweetheart, you know that?’

‘I know.’ Harry giggles. He feels Louis smiling, burying his face in Harry’s curls.

‘I won’t comment.’ Louis laughs.

‘Good.’ Harry feels content, lying in the arms of a gorgeous man, enjoying the peace and quiet. They watch the sunset before going back inside.

They share the bed, Harry on the left side, Louis on the right. Harry kisses Louis goodnight, which takes up quite some time.

  
Mitch is repairing and checking the exterior of the ‘Gay Tunes’ for any additional damage. Fortunately he finds none. He replaces the wooden planks with new glass which makes her look a little more decent.

Niall has arrived, his hands holding cans of paint, behind him Liam is walking holding more cans. Liam hugs Harry tightly and chats with him, while Mitch finishes the final repairments. Cleaning, sanding and painting the boat takes up the entire day, but the four men don’t mind, they have fun patching up the ‘Gay Tunes’. This time it’s not Harry who’s being made fun of; Louis’ painting skills are poorly and more than once one of the other boys has to correct his mistakes, especially when he mixes up the right order of colours for the rainbow. After eating out that night, they decide Louis will stay and sail back with Harry the next day.

Early in the morning Harry paints the words ‘Gay Tunes’ proudly on the boat and when they leave the wharf Mitch and his crew are waving them goodbye. It’s almost 4 o’clock in the afternoon when they see the sign for Little Beck.

‘Almost home.’ Louis says as he places his hand on Harry’s shoulder while Harry navigates the newly restored ‘Gay Tunes’ under the bridge. When they come out on the other side, Harry can’t believe what he’s seeing. The mooring is festively decorated with rainbow flags connecting the boats. On the grass behind the towpath, it’s bustling with people. Someone’s cheering when they spot the ‘Gay Tunes’ sailing to its mooring. The crowd moves to the towpath to welcome Harry and Louis.

‘It looks like you were missed, love.’ Louis whispers in Harry’s ear, while he strokes Harry’s back softly, sensing that Harry has become very emotional at the warm welcome he receives from the entire village. He swallows the happy tears, but they’re clouding his sight. Louis softly nudges him aside.

‘Wave back, love. I’ll steer her to the bank.’ Louis takes over the steering wheel, while Harry wipes his eyes, too moved to say anything at all. Liam and Niall each take a rope Louis is throwing at them and they secure the Gay Tunes. Harry steps off the boat and is immediately wrapped into a warm hug by Stevie. He’s now full on sobbing, while Stevie holds him and whispers.

‘Silly boy. I am so glad you’re home, safe and sound. I missed you.’

‘Missed you too.’ Harry chokes out.

After Stevie lets go of him, James opens his arms and hugs him.

‘The mooring was so boring and silent without the Gay Tunes, please don’t leave again.’

Then it’s Edith’s turn. She too hugs him and guides him to the picnic bench where a rainbow cake is sitting on a pink cloth. Written on top of the cake with cream it says ‘Welcome home, Harry!’

Harry’s tears keep flowing. It’s Taylor who hands him a kleenex.

‘It’s good to have you back, Harry. I kind of missed seeing your boat from my shop. I hope you’re okay.’ She says a little shyly.

‘Thank you.’ He hugs her, much to Taylor’s surprise and together they giggle, their awkwardness with each other forgotten.

Many other villagers come and greet Harry. Edith cuts the cake and Louis climbs on deck of the Gay Tunes and whistles. Everybody goes silent.

‘Now that we’re all gathered here I want to say something. Dear, sweet Harry….’ Niall whistles and people giggle. ‘Silent Horan. As I was saying ‘Dear, sweet Harry. We all missed the bright colours of the Gay Tunes at Little Beck, the music coming from the water’s edge, even though Niall tried to compensate by attempting to play a new song for us, very poorly, I must add.’

‘Hey Tomlinson!’ Niall protests.

‘Silent Horan! But most of all we missed you, Harry. Even though we all liked to tease you a bit, and I admit I was the worst.’

‘You don’t say.’ Taylor mutters next to Stevie, who chuckles at the remark.

‘I heard that Swift!’ Louis continues. ‘Anyway what I want to say is this. I’m happy to have you back as my neighbour and … maybe a little more than that.’ The last words he says with a blush on his cheeks. Harry jumps on deck and cups Louis’ cheeks and plants a firm kiss on his lips. The crowd hollors behind them.

Harry turns around and raises his arms, asking for attention while Louis jumps off the Gay Tunes with a huge grin on his face.

‘Thank you so much for your kind words, Louis.’ Harry blows him a kiss’ I’m so happy to be back. I’m sure you all heard what happened to my boat, but I’ve decided not to give up, despite the cowardly attack on the Gay Tunes. I’m here to stay. I want to thank my friends Liam, Niall and Louis for all they’ve done for me, for their help and support when I needed them. I missed seeing the Black Velvet and Floating Pages on each side of my boat when I woke up. I missed hearing Niall play new songs on deck and I even missed Louis’ loud voice coming from the Floating Pages.’ He smiles and then quasi whispers to the crowd in front of him as if Louis isn’t there.’Just between us… he’s not so bad as he appears to be. I actually quite like him … a lot.’ More whistling come from the assembled crowd. ‘Finally, thank you all for welcoming me back home. I love you all!’ He jumps off the boat and in the arms of Louis. Together they mingle with the villagers.

‘Oh Harry, sweetie. You know, it really was a surprise for you, my performance and the duet with Niall. I had signed up for the festival this year. The organisers approached me every year, but I always declined. Your love for my old music gave me the final push to perform one more time, just for you. You are such a sweet boy, I really wanted to you to enjoy the songs live, one time. Niall offered to persuade you to go to the festival with the boat, Liam and Louis were in on it too, we just didn’t want to make it too obvious, so that’s why none of us mentioned the performance. We never meant to make you feel left out. I’m so sorry for everything. I had fun performing, but it was a one off. I’m happy at the Dreamcatcher. ”

Stevie explains when she sits next to Harry on one of the benches along the towpath.

She gives him a side hug. ‘You are loved, Harry. Maybe a little more by Louis than by the rest of us.’ She glances to the side where Louis is staring fondly at the pair of them. ‘He’s such a sweetheart. I think you two will make a lovely couple.’ She gets up and softly touches Louis’ arm when she passes him.

‘Stevie is lovely, you are all lovely… ‘ Harry blinks a few times, he doesn’t want to start crying again. Louis wraps an arm around him and leads Harry to the ‘Gay Tunes’. They walk inside and close the door.

Later that night Harry lies in his berth with Louis’ arm wrapped around him. He falls asleep with a smile on his face. He’s finally home. 


End file.
